Different Colors of LED Landing Lights

Airplanes have made traveling fast and easy. Airplanes are considered as one of the safest modes of transportation. This is the reason why aviation industry is growing. Passengers are assured that planes are equipped with the most advanced technology to navigate in the sky. With the proven skills of pilots and the help of lights, navigation and safety are achievable.

Speaking of lights, there are two general categories of external lights on the aircraft. Navigation lights are the first category. These lights are always turned while the aircraft is in operation. Another category is lights that improve visibility, especially during landing and takeoff. You should know that there are many parts of a flight. It will start from taxiing, takeoff, climbing, cruising, descending and landing.

Landing is the last part of your flight but it doesn’t mean it is not equally important. This is when the aircraft return to the ground. In this particular section, you will get to know more about aviation landing lights. Landing lights refer to lights that are installed on an aircraft that can illuminate the runway or terrain during takeoff and landing. Landing lights are effectively useful for nighttime operations.

Landing lights are not your usual lamps at home. It is high-intensity lights considering the distance of the aircraft and the terrain. Other aircraft even 100 miles away should see landing lights. There are many considerations of landing light that include weight, intensity, reliability and power consumption. The industry prefers landing lights that are intense, lightweight, longer service lives while consuming little power. This is manifested by Light-emitting Diode (LED) light source.

Light-emitting Diode (LED) is one of the most famous light sources not only in the aviation industry but also other industries. LEDs may be small but it doesn’t mean it is less effective. It is known for its low power consumption, longer service life, faster switching and physical sturdiness.

LEDs produce the following colors with the help of semiconductor materials:

Infrared: For infrared LEDs, the semiconductor materials used are Gallium arsenide and Aluminum gallium arsenide.

White: For white LEDs. Semiconductor materials used are a blue diode and orange phosphor.

Purple: For purple LEDs, semiconductor materials used are red LEDs and blue and red phosphor.

The primary role of landing lights is to give visibility to pilots especially if they are close to the terrain. Landing lights are usually turned off when the plane reaches the cruising part. Landing lights can also serve as the pilot’s communication device when all else fails.